Ross Andrews Nature Poetry Contest

2016 Ross L. Andrews Nature Poetry Contest Sponsored by the Center for Human-Earth Restoration Ross Andrews was a young environmental educator who believed in the importance of the Natural World and Humans’ relationship to it. He spent years developing his own deeper relationship to Earth. Even as a soil and forestry restoration scientist, Ross knew that the key to our collective futures was through the heart and spirit. He found that poetry was the path to express his passion for the beauty, wonder, awe and/or intimacy that one experiences with the natural world. Ross spent the last eight years of his life working with young people and helping them reconnect in deeper relationships with the Earth. In honor of his recent death, his friends and relatives have chosen to remember him with an annual Nature Poetry contest. The contest will have four categories: grades K-5, 6-8, 9-12, and adult with monetary awards for each category winner. Follow the rules below: 1. Name poem form for example: Sonnet, haiku, villanelle, free verse, etc. 2. Use basic rules of capitalization 3. Proof read for grammar and spelling 4. No inappropriate or vulgar language will be accepted 5. Use formal English- no abbreviations In a cover letter, include name, address, phone number, email address, grade, age, school, city, county, state a brief descriptive paragraph of time and location of poetic theme, and certify that the poem entry is your original work. Reading and judging will be done by panel of poets and teachers. Winners will be notified prior to Earth Day, April 22. Winners will be asked to read their poems during an Earth Day Celebration at which time they will receive their award. Deadline: If emailed, no later than midnight, March 31. Send to humanearthrestoration@gmail.com If mailed, entry must be postmarked no later than March 31. Send to: Ross Andrews Nature Poetry Contest Center for Human-Earth Restoration 6814 Fayetteville Road, Raleigh, NC 27603